“AFFORDABILITY does not appear to be a key factor” in Scottish government decision-making, a Holyrood committee has found.
The cross-party finance and public administration committee expressed the concerns in its latest report on the sustainability of Scotland’s public finances.
This follows the panel’s January report saying that it was “not convinced that the Scottish government was carrying out enough strategic long-term financial planning to ensure fiscal sustainability.”
The committee said that there had been a “missed opportunity” for “reform” of the public sector, despite the SNP-Green Scottish government’s medium-term financial strategy calling for “tough and decisive action.”
The government was also challenged to show how the council tax freeze announced by First Minister Humza Yousaf at the recent SNP conference would be funded.
Committee convener Kenny Gibson of the SNP said: “As the Scottish Budget approaches, we’ve seen little evidence to suggest a shift away from the Scottish government’s short-term approach towards financial planning.”
A Scottish government spokesperson said: “The Scottish government will carefully consider the finance and public administration committee’s report and provide a full response to the committee after the Scottish Budget is published on December 19.”
